Kids and technology: what you need to know

Tablets and mobile devices are to today's preschoolers what TV was to the millennial crowd – with all the inherent worries attached. But with careful use, is it possible to indulge our children guilt-free? The experts debate...

Hands up who's signed the online petition to save CBeebies and CBBC from Government cuts? At the time of writing, nearly 170,000 people have pledged their virtual support to the cause, indicating that whatever we think of technology, whether it's TV, the household iPad or a smartphone, we consider it to be an important tool in our parenting armoury, as mum Sally White confirms. "If we've had a busy morning running around the park or at swimming class, I have no problem with Jessie, who's three, watching half an hour of TV when we get home," she says. "It gives us both a bit of time out before the afternoon's activities."

Should we or shouldn't we...

According to Ofcom's 'Children and parents: Media use and attitude report 2015', 53% of three-to-four year-olds and 75% of five-to-fifteen year-olds use a tablet, up from 39% and 64% in 2014 respectively. "Before we panic about what our children are doing, we need to look at our own consumption and whether we're modelling healthy tech habits," says Dr Nicola Yuill, a senior lecturer in psychology who specialises in child development and children and technology. "Despite all the worries over television, there is no evidence as yet that watching TV stunts brain development," she continues. "When it comes to children and technology, it's more about how it's used than whether it should or shouldn't be allowed. As with the old how-much-is-too-much TV debate, if you use technology as a tool with which to engage with your child and interact, rather than as a passive experience, it makes a big difference."

Development versus distractions...

Legitimate worries about how iPads and smartphones affect young children's brains focus on the fact that while there is currently no proof they are detrimental, the technology hasn't been around long enough for long term studies to prove otherwise. "Parents are letting their kids use apps without knowing how it affects child and brain development," says child psychiatrist Dr Robin Berman, in her book Hate Me Now, Thank Me Later, Harper Collins, £12.99. "Too many of us are assuming they're harmless and justifying it for fear our children will fall behind in a competitive electronic world. But kids will catch up on computer skills in a nanosecond. It's much harder to catch up on the emotional and social skills that children can develop only by interacting with other human beings."

Dr Berman is equally as vocal about using technology as a distraction or way or soothing irate youngsters. "When we numb our children's feelings with the 'convenient' distraction of electronics rather than teaching them to recognise and deal with their emotions, we're setting them up to follow this same impulse in adulthood," she says. "I spend so much time working to help my patients access the feelings they've ignored or medicated with excessive work, alcohol and so on – technology numbs you in a different way, and these are tough habits to break. Electronics can't be a substitute for human interaction." But before you throw your hands up in despair and wonder how on earth you'll ever get tea on the table again, Dr Berman proves she is human after all: "I'm not talking about electronics as an occasional babysitter," she says. "Many parents fall back on electronics when they need a break and tablets on aeroplanes are nothing short of life-savers. Another therapist I know, who specialises in parent-child attachment, told me: 'I have two young kids and I turn on the TV so I can make dinner. But that's very different from using TV in place of parenting.'"

The compromise? Setting limits...

Dr Yuill agrees that the argument which focuses on the fact children will be using technology at school and eventually at work, so need to 'keep up', doesn't really wash. "Think back to the technology you used as a child and it probably wasn't anything like the tech you use now," she says. "What's ironic and potentially dangerous about today's technology is that we're more connected than ever, yet it can also make us feel socially isolated because of the way its used. By limiting access to technology, and modelling responsible behaviour around your own smartphone and laptop, children naturally learn to do the same, and recognise that while technology has a place in their worlds, it's not something that's available to them at all times. It's better if we can teach children to self-regulate their time on screens, and if that means watching one episode of their favourite CBeebies programme on the iPad before they go out to play, that's probably better than a blanket ban which makes the tablet so much more attractive," she continues. "Put sensible limits in place while they're young – no tablets or phones in the bedroom, for instance - and it'll be much less of an argument as they get older."

The materials in this web site are in no way intended to replace the professional medical care, advice, diagnosis or treatment of a doctor. The web site does not have answers to all problems. Answers to specific problems may not apply to everyone. If you notice medical symptoms or feel ill, you should consult your doctor - for further information see our Terms and conditions.

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